1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus such as an electrophotographic copying apparatus, a printer, a facsimile apparatus, a composite machine having a plurality of functions including those of the electrophotographic copying apparatus, printer, and facsimile apparatus, a printing machine, or the like, and more particularly, to an image forming apparatus which has a document convey unit for conveying a document and an image reading unit for reading a document image in order to form an image.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Conventionally, an image reading unit in a digital image forming apparatus has a slit glass plate for conveying and scanning a document, and a platen glass plate for fixing and scanning the document. A document convey unit is set above the glass surfaces of the slit glass plate and platen glass plate, and separates and conveys the documents stacked on a feed tray one by one, so the image reading unit can read a document image.
In this image forming apparatus, the document convey unit can be opened and closed with respect to the glass surfaces. Sometimes the document convey unit is kept open, and a document is placed on the glass surface of the platen glass plate, so the document image is read by the image reading unit. In this case, the document convey unit is opened excessively widely for a physically handicapped user such as a wheelchair user. Hence, the user cannot operate the image forming apparatus.
The present invention has been made to solve the above inconvenience of the conventional image forming apparatus, and has as its object to provide an image forming apparatus in which the user can select an appropriate open angle of the document convey unit without changing any component.
In order to achieve the above object, according to the main aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus comprising an image reading unit having a slit glass plate for conveying and scanning a document and a platen glass plate for fixing and scanning the document, a document convey unit set above glass surfaces of the slit glass plate and platen glass plate, a display/operating portion provided to one side of the glass surfaces, and a hinge provided to the other side of the glass plates and serving to attach the document convey unit to be openable and closeable with respect to the glass surfaces, wherein the hinge has an angle stopper with which the document convey unit can be opened at one desired open angle selected from at least two different open angles with respect to the glass surfaces.
With the image forming apparatus according to the main aspect, an angle stopper is provided so the document convey unit can be opened from the glass surfaces by selecting one among two or more different open angles. When the document convey unit is opened excessively wide at an ordinary open angle and thus difficult to operate for, e.g., a physically handicapped user such as a wheelchair user, the open angle can be easily changed to a narrow open angle.
According to the second aspect of the present invention, the angle stopper of the image forming apparatus according to the main aspect can change the open angle of the document convey unit with respect to the glass surfaces by changing an attaching position (attaching direction) where the angle stopper is attached to the hinge.
With the image forming apparatus according to the second aspect, the open angle of the document convey unit with respect to the glass surfaces can be changed by changing the attaching direction of the angle stopper. Hence, the change in open angle of the document convey unit with respect to the glass surfaces can be achieved easily without changing any component.
The above and many other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become manifest to those skilled in the art upon making reference to the following detailed description and accompanying drawings in which preferred embodiments incorporating the principle of the present invention are shown by way of illustrative examples.